Searching for the 'best of show'

NEW YORK (AP) - True to his breed, Matisse the Portuguese water dog likes to play in the koi fish pond. He enjoys going on long bicycle runs, chewing Benny Bully's liver treats and falling asleep on his back.

Pretty standard stuff for a lot of pooches.

Oh, he also got a holiday card from the White House.

So perhaps it was only fitting Monday that when the Westminster Kennel Club dog show started on Presidents Day, the Portie who's a cousin to Obama family pet Sunny was the early favorite.

"He's a real dog. He likes to play, he likes to get dirty," co-owner Milan Lint said. "He just cleans up really well."

At 3 1/2 years old, Matisse indeed has done well. This is the 400th event he's entered - he's won best in show 238 times, among the most in canine history.

"Spectacular dog," praised popular Westminster television host David Frei.

On a frigid day in New York, Matisse got to rest as many of the 2,711 dogs in 192 breeds and varieties stepped into the judging ring at Piers 92 and 94, the exhibition space stretching into the icy Hudson River.

A shih tzu called Rocket, co-owned by famed and infamous heiress Patty Hearst, won the toy group Monday night at Madison Square Garden. Swagger the old English sheepdog, who finished second at Westminster in 2013, took the herding group.

Crowd-pleasing beagle Miss P was the best hound and Flame the standard poodle won in the nonsporting category.

Matisse is in the working group, which he's won the past two years at Westminster. The sporting, working and terrier winners will be selected tonight, with retired California trial-court judge David Merriam choosing the best in show right before 11 p.m.

"At this point, we're just focused on getting him to the ring healthy and happy," Lint said. "The results are the results."